Growing TOO Much Everyday

Sorry for my lack in posting here. Sometimes life just is too busy actually doing to blog.

There isn't much to update right now anyway because it has been raining. Not just like a nice steady and slightly cool spring rain either. Oh no...this was a deluge! Most reports in our local area were between 5- 8 inches of rain over a two day period. Everything is waterlogged. All of the beautiful recycled plant holders affixed to the deck have to be dumped. The end of the driveway needs trenched and some drainage tile ran. All the plants for our flower gardens that have been waiting need to go in the ground. Vegetable gardens will just have to wait until the soil is able to be tilled.

Tomorrow is Earth Day and we will be celebrating! My grandmother always told me to leave a little beauty everywhere you go. It is a lovely sentiment that has truly stuck with me over the years. This Earth Day we will be planting our 3 different varieties of hen and chicks (echeveria or sempervivium for you true plant geeks) Those don't really belong to me as my husband has claimed any and all of the succulent type of plants for his own. These have flourished well in the spot by the path we put in last year. Mostly sunny and with slightly sandy, well drained soil. Looking forward to seeing what these new ones add. Then there is the process of moving plants around. There are hardy mums and a few straggling lilies that need to be placed in the sunrise garden, along with a new columbine (stunning shade of red and delicious smelling flowers sure to bring in butterflies, bees and hummingbirds) and a stately helleborus. Finally, we will be removing one of the rose bushes we have and putting in two others. The well established rose is a gift to one of our friends :)

After we are done playing in our dirt, we are off for some additional inspiration. Free admission to the Des Moines Botanical Center http://www.dmbotanicalgarden.com/ seriously...check them out. We are fortunate to have such a gem so close to us that features such a wide range of plants, teaches classes and gives children a chance to learn. This weekend is also Bonsai Weekend. For any of you that know, those are special to me and my husband. (I have a large bonsai tattoo on my back and my husband has one on his arm) The beauty of a bonsai is that in order to grow into something phenomenal, it has to be cut along the way, ever so carefully, with intent and precision.

Get out and enjoy the upcoming Earth Day, but make everyday your dedication to a better Earth :)

Davies Demolition

This is what we started with:

It was once a decent deck, but has seen it's better years now. There were two holes that broken through near the end of last summer. It had become more of a problem and an eye-sore than anything else. We did some inspecting and discovered that most of it could just be pulled off by unscrewing the boards.There were a few screws that were stripped and a nail or two in there from the previous owners. Nothing that a man with a drill, some serious motivation and a couple of pry bars couldn't handle. I helped here and there, but this was Chad's project - all credit goes to him here. My job is vision (I can truly see something before it has taken shape)

Steady and deliberate, it took about an hour and a half to get all the deck boards off. He was able to salvage 9 sets of them that will be repurposed into green bean boxes and to build a couple of smaller raised beds. Those are drying out in our garage, waiting for the weekend when then will be assembled. Eye sore out of the way, garden space gain and materials for use elsewhere = major win! That once beat up and broken deck is about to become the new home of our row crops (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, turnips, sweet peas)  From ugly to yummy, I will take it!

No demolition project is complete without a few surprises though. This was no exception. From the way other projects were done, we knew there was a likelihood of finding something underneath the boards. We didn't expect to see what we did though. An old and crumbling brick foundation, complete with cracked and falling away mortar and a rusty cast iron sewer drain. YIKES! It was exposed. They hadn't so much as bothered to toss some extra dirt on it *sigh* At least we knew what we were dealing with. Our hearts sunk. This was a project we were looking forward to seeing through. In order to fill that we were going to need a lot of rock. Rock is not cheap to come by. We were staring straight down a few hundred dollars. I did some looking around (this is a very resourceful woman) and was lucky enough to find a lot of river rock close to our house and free for the digging. Just what we needed! A couple of hours of shoveling yesterday  with some friends (and a sore back today) finds us at this point:

Most of the space between the boards is leveled out. Another truckload of rock tomorrow and we should be set to start adding dirt. Then all that is left is to add some of our sprouting veggies to the perfectly pre-spaced rows. Nevermind that broken cement mess, we have plans for that too - one project at a time! Sweat equity paid off for us in a big way. We aren't afraid of the hard work, the hard work better be afraid of us.

Sometimes in order to grow, we have to tear down something else. Come back later to see what we are growing (and destroying)

In the Beginning

Even as I begin to type out (what will hopefully become) a frequent update of the trials, tribulations, successes, joys and celebrations of a community garden project - I can hardly believe that this is becoming a reality. I am also finding myself thinking "What have I gotten myself into?!" 

Projects are my passion. There is something gratifying about starting something and seeing it become a reality. I am, by nature, a creator. Welcome to the journey of creating a community garden. 

Last year we had a garden. Nothing too outlandish (at least not as far as fruit and veggies go - our flowers are another story) Gardening was something that was familiar to both of us, growing up with them as children. I was either born Our own children had an enthusiasm and vigor for it that we didn't expect. A drought really brought everyone's growing to a halt. Our results were decent for the small size that we had. A few gallons of green beans, some squash, cherry tomatoes and a very successful herb garden. We had some vision and added a few things. 

This year there is a lot to work on and a lot of interest/help to go along with it! Some of our seeds (above) have already been started. Some clear plastic cups, a few packets of seeds, some potting soil, painters tape, a Sharpie marker and some water were all it took to get us well on our way. We opted for skipping the "green houses" that can be purchased for a few dollars at your local retailer. The "pucks" of starter dirt are too small and the hood of the tray is too short to allow for enough growth. Our starts took off like rockets! Most seed packages say that germination time is a week plus. The picture above is what we had at just 4 days after planting. What emerged first were turnips, the varieties of lettuce, radishes, carrots and surprisingly cucumbers. That was all on the third day. The following day saw cauliflower, broccoli, peas and melons sprouting. A week later and we have tomatoes and peppers in the mix as well. So far, so impressive!

We have a lot of space, but we want to utilize everything we can. Maximizing space means maximizing results! That is where the second picture comes in to play. Hanging planters. There are crops like cilantro, lettuce, green onions and herbs like basil that are renewable. I drink a lot of SoBe lifewater due to stopping soda intake. Not ones to waste, we made a few prototypes of hanging planters until we got it right. Wash them out, take the wrapper off, cut the base out, drill four holes into the sides and string through hemp or twine. Pretty simple huh? If you want to make your hangers fancy, you can weave beads into them. We plan on hanging the from our deck rails to increase actual garden space . Those pictures will be coming soon. 

We have help :) Oh boy, do we. Help and interest are going to be the two components that really make this project happen! So far our friends have donated about 30 tomato cages, some landscaping fabric and have helped with pulling up the lower deck that had broken boards and placed ads for materials we will need. That deck will become one of our gardens instead of a hazard for our children playing outside. The boards that we reclaimed will become our boxes for other gardens. There are others planting seeds, donating naturally fertilized water, still others are donating materials. The wonderful thing about a community garden is that not everyone has to have the same skill set or experience. It is fun to learn together! About 8 families now have joined the project, the more, the merrier! 

Soon there will be some before photos that we put up and a description of what we have going where and what we already have. For today, this is a good start. Come grow with us, everyday.